The 20th over is the hardest over to bowl in the IPL. Batters swing at almost every ball, the field is spread out, and one bad ball can cost a match. Yet some bowlers love this pressure. Dwayne Bravo leads all bowlers with 39 wickets in the 20th over, ahead of Harshal Patel with 35 and Bhuvneshwar Kumar with 32. This list looks at the bowlers with most wickets in 20th over action in IPL history, and what made them so hard to hit in the final over.
The numbers below count only wickets taken in the 20th over of an innings, from 2008 to 2025. They show why captains keep trusting the same names when a game is on the line in the last six balls.
IPL Stats Bowlers with Most Wickets in 20th Over Overview
| Record detail | Record |
|---|---|
| Record | Most wickets in the 20th over in IPL history |
| Record holder | Dwayne Bravo |
| Wickets in the 20th over | 39 |
| Second on the list | Harshal Patel with 35 wickets |
| Third on the list | Bhuvneshwar Kumar with 32 wickets |
| Period covered | 2008 to 2025 |
Top 10 Bowlers with Most Wickets in 20th Over
| Rank | Bowler | Wickets in 20th Over | 20th Overs Bowled | Balls Bowled | Economy in 20th Over |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Dwayne Bravo | 39 | 62 | 351 | 10.41 |
| 2 | Harshal Patel | 35 | 38 | 214 | 10.31 |
| 3 | Bhuvneshwar Kumar | 32 | 47 | 267 | 10.62 |
| 4 | Vinay Kumar | 22 | 38 | 213 | 10.67 |
| 5 | Arshdeep Singh | 21 | 26 | 141 | 9.44 |
| 6 | Sandeep Sharma | 21 | 35 | 201 | 12.20 |
| 7 | Trent Boult | 20 | 28 | 161 | 9.83 |
| 8 | Jaydev Unadkat | 20 | 24 | 127 | 13.18 |
| 9 | Lasith Malinga | 19 | 28 | 158 | 9.41 |
| 10 | Mohammed Shami | 18 | 22 | 125 | 12.19 |
Bravo stands clear at the top. He bowled the final over in 62 innings and sent down 351 balls in that over alone. Out of those balls, 111 were dot balls, which shows how often he stopped batters from scoring even when they had to attack. His 39 wickets in the 20th over also form a large share of his 102 wickets in the death overs and his 183 wickets in total in the IPL.
Harshal Patel reached second place in far fewer innings. He took 35 wickets from just 38 final overs, which is a strike rate of close to one wicket in every final over he bowled. Bhuvneshwar Kumar sits third with 32 wickets, and he is the only bowler with 25 or more wickets in both the first over and the 20th over of an innings.
Record History
The 20th over has produced some of the most famous single overs in IPL history. A maiden over in the final over is very rare, and only four bowlers have done it.
- Irfan Pathan was the first. He bowled a maiden 20th over for Kings XI Punjab against Mumbai Indians at Mohali in 2008, in the first season of the IPL.
- Lasith Malinga followed in 2009 for Mumbai Indians against Deccan Chargers at Durban. He took two wickets in that over, and the only runs were byes and leg byes.
- Jaydev Unadkat produced the most famous one in 2017. Bowling for Rising Pune Supergiant against Sunrisers Hyderabad at Hyderabad, he defended 13 runs in the final over with a maiden that included a hat trick. He dismissed Bipul Sharma, Rashid Khan and Bhuvneshwar Kumar in turn.
- Umran Malik joined the list in 2022 for Sunrisers Hyderabad against Punjab Kings at the DY Patil Stadium in Navi Mumbai. He gave away no runs and took three wickets in the final over, while a fourth wicket fell to a run out.
Over the years, the list has been shaped by two kinds of bowlers. The first kind relies on yorkers and pace, like Malinga and Bhuvneshwar Kumar. The second kind relies on slower balls and changes of pace, like Bravo and Harshal Patel. Both styles work because batters in the final over must swing hard, so any ball that is slightly slower or slightly fuller can bring a wicket.
What This Record Tells Us
This record rewards nerve more than raw pace. The final over is bowled when the batter knows exactly what is needed, so the bowler has no place to hide. Bravo and Harshal Patel succeeded because they mixed slower balls with yorkers and made batters hit to the longer parts of the ground.
The table also shows a clear trade off between wickets and runs. Malinga has the best economy rate in the top 10 at 9.41, while Unadkat has the highest at 13.18, yet both took 20 or more wickets in the final over. Captains accept runs in the last over if the bowler keeps taking wickets, because a wicket stops a set batter and brings a new batter to the crease under pressure.
Control matters too. Sunil Narine is not in the top 10 for wickets in the 20th over, but he is noted for the best control among bowlers with 14 or more wickets in the final over. That contrast shows why teams pick different bowlers for different jobs. Some are picked to take wickets, and some are picked to keep the runs down. The best final over bowlers often do a little of both, and the playoff bowling records show the same names turning up again when the stakes are highest.
For more background, see the official IPL website and the ESPNcricinfo stats pages.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who has taken the most wickets in the 20th over in IPL history?
Dwayne Bravo has taken the most wickets in the 20th over in IPL history, with 39 wickets from 62 final overs.
Who is second on the list of most wickets in the 20th over?
Harshal Patel is second with 35 wickets in the 20th over, from just 38 final overs.
Which Indian bowler leads the list?
Harshal Patel leads the Indian bowlers with 35 wickets in the 20th over, ahead of Bhuvneshwar Kumar with 32.
Who has the best economy rate in the top 10?
Lasith Malinga has the best economy rate in the top 10 at 9.41 runs per over in the 20th over, just ahead of Arshdeep Singh at 9.44.
Which bowlers have bowled a maiden in the 20th over in the IPL?
Irfan Pathan in 2008, Lasith Malinga in 2009, Jaydev Unadkat in 2017 and Umran Malik in 2022 have all bowled a maiden in the 20th over of an IPL innings.
Who took a hat trick in a maiden 20th over?
Jaydev Unadkat took a hat trick in a maiden 20th over for Rising Pune Supergiant against Sunrisers Hyderabad in 2017, dismissing Bipul Sharma, Rashid Khan and Bhuvneshwar Kumar.
Can any active bowler pass Dwayne Bravo?
Harshal Patel needs 5 more wickets in the 20th over to pass Bravo, and Bhuvneshwar Kumar needs 8 more. Both are still active, so the record can change in future seasons.
Statistics updated through: 31 October 2026
